The trauma of Longadu

Four days on, majority of the victims of Longadu attack have not yet come back to their home.  Fear of further attacks is keeping them away in jungles under the open sky and without food. They have refused to take the relief offered by the administration. They want to be relieved of the fear. They want to get back to the normal life they used to have before the attack. Is the administration doing enough in this regard? 

There is a common pattern in most cases of attacks against minority communities. On petty pretexts, mostly rumours, the majority mob perpetrates mindless violence against the minority communities. These attacks are often associated with looting, land grabbing and ousting of the minorities.

The response to these cases remains ineffective because of their failure, if not reluctance, to address the root causes of violence. During such attacks, the law enforcers fail to take timely action.  Unfortunately, the perpetrators manage to get away through legal loopholes in most cases. This culture of impunity exacerbates the situation and corrodes whatever trust is left among the minority people.

In the case of Longadu, the administration should take necessary measures to ensure safe return of the victims to their homestead and support them with adequate relief. The perpetrators also need to be brought to book immediately. In CHT, there have been numerous incidents of ethnic violence over the years but successive governments have failed to find a peaceful solution. It should also be looked into seriously why all the government efforts are failing repeatedly.